Written with the help of AI from the Franklin City Council agenda, Monday, November 16, 2026.
Rezoning for New Story Schools at 1400 Commerce Center Drive
Council will hold a public hearing on Ordinance 2026-26, which would rezone about 4.519 acres at 1400 Commerce Center Drive from I-1 Light Industrial District to Planned Unit Development District. A planned unit development is a custom zoning arrangement with its own site plan. The ordinance also asks council to approve a PUD application and a combined preliminary and final development plan for New Story Schools. Jonathan Westendorf is listed as the presenter. The agenda gives no cost figure.
Why it matters: Under the proposed ordinances, improvements in the districts would be exempt from property tax, with owners making payments in lieu of taxes and payments authorized to Franklin schools and the Warren County Career Center.
Tax-incentive districts and tax increment financing
Three ordinances introduced by Karisa Steed deal with tax breaks tied to public infrastructure. Each would declare improvements to certain property a "public purpose" and exempt them from real property taxes. In place of those taxes, property owners would make service payments, known as payments in lieu of taxes. Each ordinance also authorizes payments to the Franklin City School District and the Warren County Career Center.
Ordinance 2026-30 would create four incentive districts, identify public infrastructure improvements that would serve the parcels in them, and set up a fund to hold the service payments. Ordinance 2026-31 would create a tax increment financing (TIF) area under Ohio Revised Code section 5709.40(B) and establish a Commercial 2026 Series public improvement fund. It authorizes, but does not require, the city to negotiate and sign a TIF agreement. Ordinance 2026-32 is a separate urban redevelopment TIF that would authorize the execution of a TIF agreement and set up an urban redevelopment fund.
A TIF directs money from the increased value of improved property toward public improvements instead of the usual property tax. The property descriptions and lists of improvements are in exhibits attached to each ordinance. The agenda text gives no dollar amounts.
Land reutilization program for vacant and unproductive land
Ordinance 2026-27 is up for a public hearing. It would create a municipal land reutilization program under Chapter 5722 of the Ohio Revised Code. The program would let the city acquire, sell, manage and dispose of nonproductive land within city limits as needed to put it back to effective use. This version includes an emergency declaration. Ordinance 2026-28, a companion with the same program language and no emergency declaration, is also being introduced. Jonathan Westendorf is listed as the presenter for both, and the agenda gives no dollar figure.
Shaker Meadows Section Six plat
Ordinance 2026-29 would approve the final plat for the Shaker Meadows Section Six major subdivision. A plat is the official map of how land is divided into lots and streets. Eric Damian is listed as the presenter, and a record plan is attached to the agenda.
Routine items and closed-door sessions
Council will approve the Nov. 2, 2026 minutes, present a Meritorious Service Award (Chief Colon), and hear committee reports, the city manager’s report and council comments. The agenda lists no contracts or purchases with dollar amounts.
Council also plans an executive session, a closed-door meeting, on three topics. They are the appointment, employment and compensation of a public employee or official; the purchase or sale of property; and negotiations with public employees over pay and working conditions. The agenda does not name the property or the employees.
How to weigh in
The meeting is Monday, Nov. 16, 2026, at 5:30 p.m., per the agenda, at the Franklin Municipal Building, 1 Benjamin Franklin Way, Franklin, Ohio 45005. The agenda includes a "Reception of Visitors" item for public comment and a public hearing section covering Ordinances 2026-26 and 2026-27. It does not spell out time limits or sign-up rules. More information is at www.FranklinOhio.org.
Source: Franklin City Council agenda, Monday, November 16, 2026.
By the numbers: Jobs in Montgomery County paid an average of $1,279 a week in Q1 2026 (BLS QCEW). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. See the data.
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